Co-author Dana Bergstrom said the hot summer could affect local populations positively at first, but could also lead to drought and heat stress on species adapted for the cold.

“Most life exists in small ice-free oases in Antarctica, and depends on melting snow and ice for their water supply,” said Bergstrom, a principal scientist at the Australian Antarctic Division.

While an increase in meltwater flooding associated with higher temperatures could provide extra water to such ecosystems – helping them on a short-term basis – it could also dislodge plants and radically change the composition of communities of invertebrates and microbes.

“Based on our experience from previous anomalous hot summers in Antarctica we can expect a multitude of biological impacts to be reported in the coming years, illustrating how climate change is impacting even the most remote areas of the planet,” the study said.

Contributors to the research came from the Australia’s University of Wollongong, the University of Tasmania and the government agency Australian Antarctic Division.